We're Still Here
by AquaTitaniaMiyuki
Summary: After Igneel's death, Natsu pushes the world away and falls into a state of depression. Can Lucy do something to help? NaLu. Warnings: Character death, angst and swearing.


**Hi there! This is my interpretation of what would happen if Natsu found Igneel…dead, and what Lucy would do to comfort him.**

**This is a NaLu. If you don't like it, go read something else. If you're a fan of NaLi, I have two stories that you can read, if you want.**

**Other warnings: Character death, angst, swearing.**

**Disclaimer: I will never own FT. Ever.**

_OoO~OoO_

_We're Still Here_

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Natsu stared down at the man in front of him. Yes, _man_. Igneel apparently had a human form that he never spoke of. It was only used for good purposes and such.

The only problem was that the man was lying on the ground with a gaping hole in his chest. The smell of blood reeked in Natsu's sensitive nose. The young Dragon Slayer kneeled beside his father.

"Igneel…"

No response.

"Igneel!"

Silence.

"IGNEEL!"

Nothing.

In a fit of frustration and confusion, the pink-haired began shaking his father by the shoulders, chanting his name again and again, as if it would bring the dragon back to life.

His companions behind him-Erza, Lucy, Gray and Happy-stared sadly at the teen. Lucy and Happy were crying. Gray looked away in despair. Bravely, Erza approached the Dragon Slayer, placing a hand on his shoulder uttering but a few words.

"_Natsu…he's gone."_

_OoO~OoO_

The trip back home wasn't any better. Due to the incident, everyone walked back to Magnolia. They didn't want Natsu to feel any worse than he already was by forcing him on transportation.

Once they entered the guild hours later, everyone stopped what they were doing. The depressed and dark looks Team Natsu gave off gave everyone chills.

Breaking the silence, Mira asked the dreaded question: "What…happened?"

As that was said, Natsu broke down in front of the whole guild. Happy cried in his lap. Wendy came and gave him a sisterly hug. Lucy held his arm. Erza sat by his side. The others watched in concern and confusion. Gray quietly answered Mira's question.

"_Igneel…is dead."_

_OoO~OoO_

Five days later, a funeral service was arranged. When Makarov, the priest, asked if anyone wanted to say some final words, everyone expected Natsu to get up.

But he didn't.

Instead, Wendy got up and went to the pedestal, much to everyone's surprise.

"I never met Igneel before…but Natsu-san always told me about him," says the youngest Dragon Slayer, "He always spoke of him with…excitement and…he wanted me to meet him someday…" Wendy began to tear up, as well as some in the crowd, "Natsu-san…if I lost Grandine, I don't know what I would do…please hang in there…"

Silently, the pink-haired Dragon Slayer left the service and disappeared with the rain. Lucy tried to go after him, but none other than Gajeel stopped her.

"_Give him some time, Bunny Girl."_

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Weeks passed since the dragon's funeral. Natsu didn't take any missions. He never went to the guild; he stayed at home sitting on his couch, sulking. He barely talked to anyone, not even Happy. He only ate when others forced him to. He didn't have the inspiration to do anything anymore. He separated himself from the world.

His friends could feel the fire inside him slowly burn out.

_OoO~OoO_

One fateful day, one month later, Lucy came knocking at his door. Unsurprisingly, no one answered. The female mage opened the door and peered around. No one was home. She exited the house (which was extremely dirty) and turned towards an empty clearing. Absentmindedly, Lucy headed towards the clearing.

_OoO~OoO_

Lucy couldn't believe her eyes. She just saw Natsu jump into the nearby river.

Expected the worst, she jumped in after him. After successfully pulling him out after ten seconds, she began to scold him. "Why did you jump, Natsu! You could have…"

He turned and gave her a blank look. Lucy gasped. There were dark circles around his red puffy eyes. He sniffled. "…Why did you save me…? I…just wanted to…float to the bottom and never come back…" he said lifelessly, "I don't wanna…live in a world…without _him_…"

The blonde gasped again and began to shake him angrily.

"You were planning to kill yourself? ! I know…that losing someone hurts! It hurts like HELL! But, Natsu…!"

Tears began to form in her eyes. The pink-haired quietly stared at her brown orbs as she continued to yell at him.

"Why, Natsu…wh-why?" she shakily spoke, "WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO DIE? DAMMIT, NATSU! YOU'RE THE ONE THAT USED TO TELL US THAT WE SHOULDN'T WASTE OUR LIVES, THAT WE HAVE PEOPLE WHO DON'T WANT US TO GO, AND WHO LOVE US!"

Natsu responded, "But Igneel is…he's…" he took a breath, "IGNEEL… IS DEAD! THERE'S NO ONE ELSE OUT THERE TO LOVE ME! I HAVE NO IDEA WHO MY REAL PARENTS ARE AND NOW, ONCE WE'VE FOUND HIM, IGNEEL FUCKING DIES RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME! LUCY, THERE'S NO-"

"THERE'S _**US, **_YOU IDIOT!" Lucy sobs, "YOU _**DO **_HAVE PEOPLE WHO LOVE YOU! YOU HAVE _**FAIRY TAIL!**_ THERE'S WENDY AND GAJEEL WHO THINK OF YOU AS A BROTHER! YOU HAVE HAPPY, YOUR BEST FRIEND! MASTER! GRAY! ERZA! THE OTHERS! AND…AND..!"

"_**YOU HAVE ME!" **_Lucy shouts towards the sky, "_**WE'RE STILL HERE! WE ALL LOVE YOU, NATSU!"**_

She drops to the ground, clutching the Dragon Slayer's vest tightly, "Pl-please…don't…die…don't l-leave us…"

All of a sudden, something warm embraced her. Lucy opened her eyes to see Natsu hugging her tightly. She felt her white shirt getting wet from the tears that were falling from _his _eyes, but she couldn't care less. He hugged tighter as he began to whisper something in her ear.

"Lucy…I-I'm sorry…"

"…"

"I'm sorry…for everything…Lucy…"

The blonde cried even more. "It's okay, Natsu…losing someone is h-hard…but we gotta live on…for their sake. You get it…right?"

The fire mage nodded, tears still flowing down. The duo stayed in their positions for a few more moments until Natsu finally let go and got up from the ground.

Wiping his tears, he grinned, "Let's go to the guild, Luce. I haven't seen them in so long!"

Lucy smiled and nodded. Before Natsu was able to take a step forward, she pulled him into a long, sweet kiss. Natsu turned the same color of his hair.

Just as she broke away from the kiss, Lucy began to walk towards the guild with a blush and a victorious smile on her face.

'_That was…my first kiss…'_

Natsu watched his blonde friend walk away. He was uncharacteristically at a loss for words. Brushing his lips with his fingers, he grinned again.

'_So that's what a kiss is like…'_

_OoO~OoO_

Getting over his dumbfounded state, Natsu ran and caught up to Lucy. He slid his rough hand into her soft one.

Smiling a genuine smile, he told her, _"Thank you…Lucy…" _

She smiled at him, her face lighting up like the sun.

Igneel may be gone…but he still had Lucy, right?

The duo walked hand-in-hand towards Fairy Tail, their home.

_OoO~OoO_

**A/N: Yay, it's done! If anyone noticed something wrong in the story, please speak up! This was my first NaLu, so I want a truthful answer of how I did.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**R&R**

**~Miyuki**


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